Chinese TV makers outstrip Korean firms in Q2: report

Chinese TV makers are set to outperform their South Korean rivals in the global TV market as they have shipped more products in the second quarter amid the COVID-19 impact, according to a market researcher Tuesday.

According to UK-based market tracker Omdia, Chinese TV manufacturers are projected to have shipped out 15.14 million units from April to June, much higher than that of Korean tech firms Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics.

The domestic manufacturers here are estimated to have shipped a total of 12.77 million units during the same period, down 23.8 percent on-quarter.

As a result, Korea is expected to account for 33.1 percent of the global market, falling behind that of China which has 39.2 percent share, the data showed.

The share gap marks the largest since the third quarter of 2018.

According to Korean TV makers, their overseas sales took a severe blow from the COVID-19 pandemic in the US and European markets in the second quarter.

“While the Korean companies rely heavily on TV exports, Chinese players pivoted to their domestic market,” an industry insider explained.

Omdia also said that global TV shipments in the April-June period are expected to reach 38.61 million units in total, down 17 percent on-quarter and 19 percent on-year.

By Song Su-hyun (song@heraldcorp.com)